Beijing: American Torri Edwards led favourites in the women's 100 meters into the second round through Saturday morning's opening heats in the chase to decide the world's fastest woman.
Edwards won her heat in 11.26 seconds, fifth overall, and was joined in the second round by compatriots Lauryn Williams and Muna Lee as well as Jamaican stars Kerron Stewart and Sherone Simpson, all expected to challenge for gold.
In all, 40 women advanced to Saturday night's second round with the semi-finals and finals set for Sunday. The top three in each heat automatically advanced.
Edwards, the 2003 world champion, is running her fastest at age 31. She ran this year's world best of 10.78 seconds in the US Olympic trials semi-finals, a career-best effort that made her the eighth-fastest woman all time.
"I just wanted to get through as easy as possible," Edwards said of her opening heat. "I'm glad to finally be out there. It kind of got nerve wracking the last two or three days."
Williams, the 2004 Athens runner-up, won the 2005 world title and finished second to Jamaica's Veronica Campbell-Brown in a photo finish at last year's world final. She took second in her heat in 11.38.
Williams had predicted the Olympics would not be as intense as US trials final but found out there was plenty of tension on offer.
"It's intense and crazy in the first round even," Williams said. "You can't take it for granted."
Muna Lee, the US champion who also qualified in the 200, said she ran more comfortably than at the US trials, where she won in a personal best 10.85, in winning her heat in 11.33.
"I kind of relaxed," Lee said. "I felt really good. It went comfortably. I just got everything working."
No Jamaican woman has ever won Olympic 100m gold but the island-nation rivals promise to be a threat nonetheless.
Kerron Stewart, who set a personal best of 10.80 to win at Jamaica's trials, was third in her heat in 11.48
Sherone Simpson, the 2006 World Cup 100m winner, won her heat in 11.28.
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